Wow, that is one powerful piece of work! Qualifying for all four classes must have been tough, though, not to mention the down payment on all those levels you take and then forget about from the first three classes.

Big pimpin if you get that far though, eh?

Conjecture: they are previewing this material so that we know the 5e bard will be a badass-of-all-trades, and not the awkward, backup-singer exemplified by Elan of OotS?

Wow, that is one powerful piece of work! Qualifying for all four classes must have been tough, though, not to mention the down payment on all those levels you take and then forget about from the first three classes.

Big pimpin if you get that far though, eh?

Conjecture: they are previewing this material so that we know the 5e bard will be a badass-of-all-trades, and not the awkward, backup-singer exemplified by Elan of OotS?

there's only three classes. The druid part is when the player is actually earning bard levels.

Wow, that is one powerful piece of work! Qualifying for all four classes must have been tough, though, not to mention the down payment on all those levels you take and then forget about from the first three classes.

Big pimpin if you get that far though, eh?

Conjecture: they are previewing this material so that we know the 5e bard will be a badass-of-all-trades, and not the awkward, backup-singer exemplified by Elan of OotS?

There's only three classes. The druid part is when the player is actually earning bard levels.

It took me a year and a half of steady play to make a fast bard (minimum levels) and over three years to do one at max level fighter/thief (8/9)

the really hard part is not using your fighter levels if you do you don't get experience for the stuff you did. Some DMs would follow the rules to the letter and you lose it for the entire adventure.

I was less strict but you didn't gain xp if you resorted to other class abilities for at least the combat or situation where the lapse occurred and afterwards if it affected the outcome of the adventure. Losing XP was a big deal when you needed hundreds of thousands for your next level.

Nope. The paladin from the Greyhawk Supplement preceded him by about two years. A fighter with 17 Cha and Lawful alignment could "become" a paladin. The wording left it fuzzy as to when Paladin-hood could be achieved. Some DMs interpreted as at character creation, while others interpreted it that it could occur after character creation (if, for example, he changed his alignment or his charisma somehow became augmented).

<exasperated DM> "Underlying what? ... motivation? Do you want to play Dungeons & Dragons or not?"

<drama obsessed player> "How can I narrate my character's co-mingled sense of alienation and ennui towards modern society in this second-rate dungeon hack? My character returns to the surface and uses his remaining gold to start up an organic coffee shop that caters to left-wing revolutionaries... and hot elvish chicks."

Nope. The paladin from the Greyhawk Supplement preceded him by about two years. A fighter with 17 Cha and Lawful alignment could "become" a paladin. The wording left it fuzzy as to when Paladin-hood could be achieved. Some DMs interpreted as at character creation, while others interpreted it that it could occur after character creation (if, for example, he changed his alignment or his charisma somehow became augmented).

Nope. The fighter becomes a paladin; the paladin is not a new class, per se. All of the erstwhile fighter's levels would now be paladin levels. Agreed?

A bard is an entirely separate class to its prerequisite classes... and thus it remains the first prestige class.

Whoops ... two levels too many. Have to change before reaching the top level, so max fighter/thief was 7/8 before going bard.

Originally Posted by 1E PHB

Bards begin play as fighters, and they must remain exclusively fighters until they have achieved at least the 5th level of experience. Anytime thereafter, and in any event prior to attaining the 8th level, they must change their class to that of thieves. Again, sometime between 5th and 9th level of ability, bards must leave off thieving and begin clerical studies as druids; but at this time they are actually bards and under druidical tutelage.

Emphasis mine. Had a player with a bard in the last 1E campaign I ran many moons ago and it was fun when he finally qualified for the class.

"The Soul of D&D?It's rolling a natural 20 when you're down to 3 hit points and the cleric's on the floor and you're staring that sunnavabitch bugbear right in his bloodshot eye and holding the line just long enough to let the wizard unleash a fireball at the guards who are on their way, because they're all that stands between you, the Foozle and Glory." - WizarDru